Some Nights
by CandleHeadButt
Summary: Requested short story! Things are getting hot as it is now summer at Litwak's. A chance meeting in a new game leads to some interesting results for Ralph.


Some nights.

Some nights are slow, some nights are exciting.

Some nights are hot.

Niceland was hot; much too hot.

In the dead heat of the summer night, everyone in the game was trying their best to cool off. The little Nicelanders were all about, doing various things to prevent the heat from overtaking them but either way, it was all the same.

It was hot.

Much too hot.

Darn summer nights; as enjoyable as they were, sometimes things could be a bit overwhelming.

Ralph sat in his little shack, fanning himself with his large hand. The air had gone out in his house again and with Felix out making repairs to the other apartments, the big wrecker knew it was going to be a while before his friend would come his way. The man slouched on the couch, the humidity all around him making him feel more like a baked brick than a nine foot tall wrecker. He looked out his window, seeing the multicolored stars twinkling above.

They twinkled and they shined. On any other day, they would have been a welcomed view in the dark of night.

But it was just SO hot!

The big man moaned, annoyed with himself for staying indoors for no reason. It wasn't as if the Nicelanders feared him anymore. He could go out and do whatever he wanted with them and anyone else so what was the point of roasting to death in his own home?

"Ah, its gonna be Sunday anyway…." Ralph mumbled, wiping his brow "Might as well take off for a bit…."

Take off? Where?

Sugar Rush?

He knew Vanellope was mostly likely busy with yet another race so perhaps was not the best time to see her.

Tapper's?

Considering how hot it was EVERYWHERE in the arcade, the place was probably packed, the onslaught of customers probably making the entire establishment feel like an oven.

Ralph needed to go somewhere cool. Ralph needed to go somewhere refreshing.

Cool….like water.

Refreshing….like water.

Water?

A BEACH.

A light went off in the man's head, a game coming to him.

Crystal Sands!

How could he forget about THAT game?

Litwak had just installed the new interactive surfing game all but a week ago and it had been the talk of the place ever since. Ralph hadn't been in but from what he heard down the wire, the place was known for its pristine beaches….

And clear, COOL waters.

Water, water everywhere….and just the place to go.

The very thought made the big man feel better and he smiled at the thought of his giant feet going through the silky, golden sands and his entire body being washed over by the ocean spray. He looked over at his clock.

Nine thirty.

It was late but he had to do it. It was better than sitting at home and complaining.

After managing to peel himself from his couch, the man collected a pair of shorts and a towel, tossing them into a bag and heading off.

He was a man on a mission alright.

A mission to get out of the blistering heat!

Two train rides later, Ralph found himself in Crystal Sands and to his surprise, he found that he wasn't the only one who had thought to seek refuge in the game. The place was PACKED with various character from other games who were enjoying everything the game had to offer.

The sand, the surf, the food, the music. There was something for EVERYONE.

Ralph peered around, though being so much bigger than everyone else it wasn't a difficult task to do.

Was that Dig-Dug doing the limbo? Was that a Nicelander playing volley ball? Was that a Candy Racer stuffing themselves full of food at the party table.

The man smirked, feeling a might glad he had chosen to come.

Who knew what fun he would have missed out on had he not.

"Heh, seems like my kinda game."

Ralph made his way through the crowd and scouted around for a nice place on the beach. It took a while to file through the massive wave of people but he saw it; the perfect spot! It wasn't too far from the crowd but it was just far enough that he wouldn't be stepped upon should something else spring up. Without even a worry in his mind, Ralph made his way towards the sand but as he took a step forward-

"OOF!"

"AH!"

The wrecker let out a gasp, feeling the slight bump of something, or SOMEONE, hitting him against his chest. He looked down and to his horror, a woman lay on the ground before him, her hair in a jumbled mess in her face and a hand rubbing her hips.

"Oh my goodness!" the man stammered, quickly going to his knees and picking the woman up "I am so, SO sorry ma'am! I didn't see-!"

There was a soft chuckle from the woman, making Ralph stop his panicked chatter.

"Hey, hey. Cool your jets big guy…" the velvety tone said "Ya might have given me a good BUMP, but I'm still in once piece!"

Ralph blushed as he looked into the eyes of the woman, their crystal blue color shimmering as much as the ocean waters. Ralph felt his cheeks flare seeing the sweet smile forming on the woman's face and much to his surprise, she helped herself up, standing up and flipping her dark red hair out of her face.

"Gotta say though, had I not taken a second look I would have thought I ran into a brick wall or something!"

Ralph felt as if his tongue were tied in his mouth, the poor wrecker speechless as he continued to admire the beautiful form before him.

"I-I-!"

The woman brushed the sand from her sides and looked up, taking notice in just how bashful Ralph had become. She snickered again, flashing a smile as she tapped the taller man on the nose.

"Sheesh, I said I was alright big fella! Don't short out on me!"

A mental snap brought Ralph back to his senses, the man shaking his head as he looked down at the woman.

"Huh? What?!" he gasped, shaking his head "I'm sorry, what did ya say ma'am?"

Nice. Smooth move, Ralphie-Boy.

"I saaaiiid….." the woman began, placing her hands on her hips and leaning closer to Ralph "I'm okay but from the looks of things, you're NOT….Mr?"

"Ralph…." The man responded, a bit of shame in his voice from his previous behavior "Wreck-it-Ralph!"

"Ah, Wreck-It!" the woman smiled, taking the giant's hand without hesitation and shaking it "Heard a lot about ya, big fella! Don't worry! All of its GOOD!"

The woman once again gave Ralph a cheeky grin, almost as if she enjoyed toying with him.

"Well…SOME of the things…" she snickered "I HAVE heard ONE or TWO things that might have….er…."

Ralph tuned redder than ever before, pulling his hands up before him "I swear, whatever it is or was, it's just a rumor!"

There must have been something to Ralph's reaction that amused the woman as not a second later, she erupted into a great deal of laughter but as the sounds hit Ralph's ears he found he could not be annoyed by the sound.

There was just something so playful to the woman's laugh, something that reassured the man that she meant no harm in what she had said to him.

But rather, that she had pulled him into a small trap.

"I was joking big guy!" the woman sighed, running her fingers through her hair "Ya have more than a STELLER reputation here but I never would have thought I would run into ya so soon!"

Ralph scratched his chin, arching a brow "Ya make it seem like you were expectin' me or somethin'…."

"Let's just say that I've been wantin' ta meet ya since we were plugged in."

"Plugged in?"

"Yes." The woman nodded "Didn't ya know? We came with Crystal Shores when Litwak won that auction!"

Ralph had suddenly remembered, the woman's statements being true. Crystal Shores was a NEW game but it had come with an older one, a CLASSIC in the eyes of every gamer.

Donkey Kong.

Ralph could feel his heart beating faster as his eyes lit up. How in the world could he have been so clueless to the fact? How could he MISS who he was talking to. His jaw dropped as he looked at the woman again, the edges of his mouth starting to form a small but excited smile.

"NO!"

The woman nodded, batting her eyelashes "Knew you'd figure it out sooner or later…."

"Ms. Pauline!" the wrecker said, his voice full of excitement not unlike that of a child meeting their hero "I-! I CAN'T BELIVE-!"

"Shhh, shhh!" the woman said, standing on her tip-toes and putting her hands on the man's mouth "I'm here to RELAX! I don't need people rushin' up to me an' askin' me stuff about classic gamin' an' all that!"

"Oh!" the man said, blushing again "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to-!"

"HA! GATCHA!" Pauline laughed, pinching Ralph on the cheek "No one here is houndin' me big guy! I was just playing!"

"B-But you're more or less a CELEBRITY, Ms. Pauline!" the wrecker said, taking the woman gently by the wrist.

"Me? A CELEBRITY?" the woman scoffed "Pa-SHAW. I'm just another face in the damsel crowd. Nothin' big."

"Hey, don't undersell yourself!" Ralph smiled.

Pauline looked up at the man, humored by how he was acting towards her. She pulled her hand away, shaking her head "Thanks for the words of encouragement, junior. You're just too sweet."

Once again, Ralph could feel the blood rushing to his cheeks, dreading what shade of red he was turning in front of the woman now.

But she had called him sweet…..

"Y-You're welcome." The man said "An-an' I wanna thank ya for not gettin' mad at me when I ran into ya."

"Meh, I've been through worse." The woman shrugged "A lil bump isn't going to do me any harm…."

"Er, right…."

Pauline could tell just by looking at the giant before her that Ralph was feeling more than uneasy at the moment. She HAD to do something to lighten the mood for the man and break him out of his brick-shell.

But what?

She looked over at the beach tower, noticing the giant clock that stood over the patrons.

It was nearing ten.

Almost time, almost time.

"Hey, is this your first time here?"

Ralph looked down at Pauline, a might confused "Er, yes?"

"Then I wanna show ya somethin'…." The woman said as she pulled Ralph towards the water.

On any other normal day, Ralph wouldn't have budged an inch from the spot, the wrecker known for his strength but on this day?

With the way his knees were knocking, the way his throat felt dry and the way his ENTIRE body felt like it was sinking into the sand?

Well, today things were DIFFERENT.

Pauline found that she could pull the man easily wherever she wanted.

And she had plans for the man.

GREAT plans.

"W-where are we goin'?!" Ralph stammered as Pauline dragged him closer and closer to the waters.

"Trust me!" the woman said with a smile "I've been to this place PLENTY of times since we got here an' there is somethin' ya just can't miss!"

"B-but what is it?! WAIT!"

*SPLASH!*

Ralph was quick enough to take a gulp of air before he hit the water as he quickly found himself sinking fast in the blue waves. Pauline proved to be faster on the reaction than the big man, swimming gracefully to the surface as she swan further away from the shore. Ralph could only watch as he half-floated, half-fumbled underwater, finally realizing that if he were going to be joining the woman for the night AND making it out alive, he better swim UP.

Thankfully, Ralph's talents at swimming were ALMOST as good as his wrecking skills.

ALMOST.

*GASP!*

"'Bout time you showed up…." Pauline smirked. Ralph coughed a bit, kicking his big feet underwater.

"It just takes me a bit more effort to pull myself up here! I'm not a light as you!"

Pauline waggled a brow at the man, turning and swimming away.

"Not as fast either, as I can see…."

"HEY!" the man shouted, trying to catch up "Wait for me!"

Despite the nervous feeling coming from within, Ralph found that he could not pull away from the woman and continued to follow her, with or without his common sense. Thankfully, it didn't take long for the two to reach their destination; a little patch of land in the middle of the waters.

Pauline stepped onto the sands first, shaking out the water from her hair as she looked back at Ralph.

"Hurry up! Sit down before you miss it!"

"Miss WHAT?" the man asked, crawling his way to the shore on his knees "First ya push me in the water, then ya nearly leave me out in the middle of the ocean, now WHAT?"

"Aw, ya big baby! TRUST ME!"

Why did EVERYONE have to play with Ralph in such a manner? Did he have a big sign that said 'PUSHOVER' taped on his forehead that he wasn't aware of or something?

The man huffed in annoyance but still he found himself unable to turn away from the curvaceous bombshell. He stood on his feet and crossed his arms, marching right up to her.

"FINE." He mumbled "But if you knock me out here, don't think I'll hunt your cheek butt down and-!"

_*PHWEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!*_

Ralph let out a scream as a SHARP, whistling like sound came from behind him. He FELL to the ground and covered his head, only to hear a loud POP and a CRACKLE from above. He peeked a bit, seeing Pauline sitting before him and smiling once more.

That smile.

That cheeky, playful, cat-like smile.

"Heh, CUTE." The woman smiled as she once more poked Ralph in the nose.

The man looked up and witnessed a shower of color above him.

Gold, blue, red, and green. So many colors, so many lights.

It hit him all at once what was going on.

A fireworks show.

And Pauline had taken him to the best spot in the game to view it.

_*PHWEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!*_

**_*BOOM!*_**

Another explosion of color erupted above the two, Pauline taking Ralph by the hand and guiding him to sit down.

"Ever see something like this?"

Ralph said nothing; it wasn't as if this was the first time he had seen a fireworks show in his life but there was just something about this one that made him feel….

Made him feel….

It was a feeling that the man could not explain at once. He looked down at Pauline, her very smile and her bright eyes reaching him in ways that he had never felt before.

No, no. It couldn't have been.

There was no way it could have been.

But that would have explained everything from the very moment they met.

The fumbled words, the fluttering heart, the blush.

So much blush.

Had Ralph fallen…in LOVE?

LOVE.

The word was small but the meaning was BIG. Even more so than Ralph's own fist COMBINED.

"Ya still with me, big fella?"

Ralph looked down at Pauline, the woman placing her hands atop his. She wasn't shy about it at all; she was much more comfortable flirting with Ralph than he was and the man soon realized that this wasn't some spur of the moment thing.

It was almost as if Pauline had PLANNED this for some time.

"I love to watch the fireworks…." The woman began, finally getting Ralph to sit next to her "But I usualy come out here alone. Sure, Mario or Donkey Kong come to this game with me but they go off on their own before the show starts."

"So you're alone?" Ralph said.

"I wouldn't say alone…" Pauline replied "I will always have friends I care for, even new ones…."

The woman stopped, looking up at Ralph again with her bewitching eyes.

"But I've seen you from afar big guy…" she purred "An' from the very second I laid my eyes on ya, I knew that there was something there."

Ralph leaned back a bit, goose-pimples on his skin "R-Really?"

"I saw that you were alone and that was something I didn't want to continue…I hate to see people sad or to see them upset. And I could tell from just looking at you that you're a man who has a heart but you also want one to share….."

Ralph wanted to say something. Oh, HOW he wanted to say something but as he prepared to move his lips…

One kiss.

One sweet kiss.

**_*BOOM!*_**

All thoughts became blurred, all of time had stopped in that one moment.

With that kiss, Ralph couldn't have been happier.

With that kiss, Ralph suddenly felt like the luckiest man in the arcade.

With that kiss….

No, no. Stop Ralph. What are you doing?

What was he doing?

What about Pauline?

The woman continued to kiss the wrecker's lips, enjoying the rush and the feel but to her surprise, she felt something take hold of her sides.

Two large hands, gently wrapping themselves around her.

She pulled away, looking Ralph in the eyes. He seemed so upset, so nervous. What was wrong?

"Did I-?"

"No…." the man said "You're fine. Its just…."

"It's just what?" the woman asked, sitting back "What is it?"

"I-I don't know…." The man panted, trying to catch his breath "Its just….everything is movin' so fast! I mean, I'm not saying that YOU'RE to-too much but-!"

"Then maybe we should slow down…." Pauline smiled "Maybe….maybe a smaller kiss would have sufficed in this moment."

The man placed a finger to his lips, hoping that his words had not offended the woman "Perhaps…."

Much to the man's surprise, Pauline's mood didn't go cross. She climbed off of Ralph and sat next to him, leaning on him softly.

"Maybe….maybe we should just sit back and enjoy the show."

Fireworks were still going off above the two, filling the night sky with an array of colors.

Yes. Maybe this was the best.

Making himself comfortable, Ralph leaned back and continued to watch the show, the formations above him taking his mind off the heat as well as the embarrassment he had felt only moments before.

And then he felt it.

Pauline's hand atop his own.

The two looked at each other for a moment but there was no denying it by now.

It was there.

That spark.

That feeling.

Neither of them could truly explain it but something was there.

And it was something that no one could take away.

Pauline leaned on Ralph's side, taking in his warmth.

"So, ya glad ya came out here?"

Ralph chuckled as he looked down at the smaller woman, the loud explosions having gone silent in his mind long ago.

"Ya can't imagine how much….."


End file.
